


The Adviser

by Feneris



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Good Advice When You Hear It, Kings and Nobles, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-26
Updated: 2013-10-26
Packaged: 2017-12-30 14:04:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,536
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1019513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Feneris/pseuds/Feneris
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>King Eren was known for many things. His determination, his fearlessness, and his prowess in battle. </p>
<p>What he was not known for however was his kindness or mercy. </p>
<p>Thankfully, his trusted Adviser, Lord Armin Arlert, has been there through his entire rein. Staying the King's hand when necessary, and guiding him with his wisdom. </p>
<p>For King Eren trusts his adviser implicitly, and Lord Arlert needs but open his mouth, and the King will do what he suggests without pause or hesitation.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Adviser

**Author's Note:**

> Yet another fill I did for the SnK Kink meme. I've always been fond of AUs, and the premise of this prompt just inspired me. Inspiration for much of Armin's advice was taken from actual historic events. When building the Great Wall, many of the soldiers and workers got restless from being so far away from their families, so the Emperor order villages be constructed along the Wall so that the soldiers and workers could move their families there. At the same time many empires relied on a good network of roads in order to both link their empire together, and to respond quickly to trouble. (Rome being a prominent example) Machiavelli's "The Prince" also played an influence in this story.

_Excerpted from "The Titan Kings: A History of Shiganshina Royalty"_

_King Eren the Furious is one of the more famous of Shiganshina's kings. Reputed to have been fearless in battle, he led many successful campaigns of conquest against the kingdom's old enemies and by the time he died he had nearly doubled Shiganshina's borders. He also was responsible for the many improvements he made to the kingdom's infrastructure, and for his legal reformations and crackdowns which significantly reduced corruption and even led to the eradication of many underground slavery rings in the kingdom._

_What King Eren was not known for however, was his mercy or kindness._

\---

"What do you mean work has stopped on the wall!?" Eren snarled, his hand slamming down on the table.

"Milord," General Marco, cleared his throat. "The workers laid down their tools and refused to work unless specific requests were met. When we ordered the soldiers to return them to work, they refused to do so unless we agreed to take the worker's petition to you. They have much the same demands as the workers."

Eren scowled. "And what are those demands?" he hissed through his teeth. "They're getting paid right?"

Marco swallowed. "Yes... But..."

General Jean stepped forward. "They're sick and tired of being stuck at the wall, that's what." He snapped. "Most of them haven't seen their families in over a year, the food is shit, we've had two outbreaks of disease, and most of them can't even spend their pay on wine to get drunk on!"

Eren's eyes narrowed and he surged to his feet, ready to give his General a piece of his mind. "How dare you talk to me like that you piece of shit!"

"Milord." The room froze as Lord Armin stepped forward. "I think I may have a solution to this problem."

Everyone held their breath as Eren turned his gaze to his most trusted adviser. He sat back down on his seat and motioned for Armin to continue.

Armin cleared his throat and motioned to several spots on a large map laid out in the center of the room. "Milord Jeager. There are several locations along the wall which are suitable for farming. If we sponsor the construction of villages at those sites, then the workers and soldiers can move their families in to tend the land. This will allow them easy access to their family, provide better housing, cheaper and better food, and will attract merchants with whom they can spend their pay. Additionally, when the wall is finally complete, we can use these villages to house and support any troops we have garrisoned on the wall."

Eren nodded to himself in agreement. "That's a good plan Armin. Let it be done." He cast a glare at the two generals. "I take it that will satisfy the workers?"

Marco nodded frantically. Jean scowled, but nodded all the same.

"Good, get to it. I want to hear that work has resumed before the week is out!"

\---

_For all his fearlessness and determination however, it is recognized that without the support of his two closest (and only) friends, he would have likely either been assassinated by an ambitious nobility, or would have dragged Shiganshina into ruin. As it was Lord Armin Arlert and Lady Mikasa Ackerman would prove to be two of the most important people in the whole country barring King Eren himself._

_Their stories are practically legends in their own right._

_When he was but a boy of nine, Prince Eren killed two fully grown men single handily. All in defense of a woodsman's orphaned daughter. The girl, a young Mikasa Ackerman, returned the favor by slaying a third man in the defense of her prince._

_Prince Eren rewarded her by offering her a place in his household, and gave her the scarf from around his neck. (That scarf would later become the symbol of the Royal Guard, and legend has it that Prince Eren dyed that first scarf with the blood of the man Mikasa had killed in his defense.) Mikasa would grow up to become the Commander of King Eren's Royal Guard, and the head of his Secret Police. The single minded ruthlessness she displayed in hunting down and eradicating King Eren's enemies became the stuff of nightmares, and many enemies of the King would fear that every knock on their door would be Mikasa Ackerman coming to kill them._

\---

Armin's feet hit a patch of blood on the floor and he nearly slipped and fell. "Eren! Mikasa!" he called out frantically. _"Gods above! I hope the assassins haven't got them!."_

"Goddamnit! I nearly had that one!"

Relief blossomed in Armin's chest. Eren was alive, and if what he was saying was any indication... He rounded the corner. Eren was standing there with his sword drawn, Mikasa was standing across from him, blood splattered across her front, the bodies of two dead assassins were slumped against the walls.

Eren was about to open his mouth to argue further with Mikasa, when he noticed Armin. "Armin! Thank the gods your alive! What happened? Did they try and get you too?"

"Nearly," Armin gasped. "Ambushed me in the kitchen. Head Chef Sasha bludgeoned him to death with a cast iron pan before he could hurt me though."

"Bless that woman!" Eren cried. "I'll never complain about her eating her way through half the panty again!" His eyes suddenly went hard. "Those bastards... Mikasa!"

Mikasa snapped to attention. "Who needs to die Milord?"

"Everyone!" Eren snarled. "Everyone who had even the smallest part in this! Kill them all, I don't care if all they did was lend them string. I want them dead, down to the last child!"

"WAIT!"

Eren turned to Armin in surprise. "What? They nearly killed you! They need to die!"

"Yes, but... If we kill everyone, like you are suggesting, all we are going to do is ferment more opposition against you. Kill those who hired the assassins, yes. But arrest and put on trial those that were not directly involved. Confiscate the property of all those that are found guilty and give it to those who remained loyal to you. That way your enemies won't have the means to retaliate, and everyone knows of the benefits of loyal service. Forgive those who were merely sympathetic, for it will spread word of your mercy, especially when compared to the other kings."

Eren's eyes narrowed as he considered Armin's words. "You sure about what you said?"

"Positive."

The king nodded. "Then it shall be done." He turned to Mikasa. "You heard Armin. There are people who need to die."

Her eyes narrowed in a look of pure hate and determination. "With pleasure Milord."

\---

_Such was the close bond between the three, that King Eren did not in fact trust anyone but them. He never took on any other advisers, and indeed never trusted advice from anyone other than Lord Armin. He never took on any consorts, nor did he marry. Instead he fathered a son and two daughters with Lady Mikasa. The eldest daughter would go on to inherit the kingdom, the youngest would end up joining a monastery and devoting her life to scholarly pursuits, while the son set off eastward and ended up conquering a distant land, which made him their king._

_Rumors persist to this day that some of the children (or perhaps all of them) were in fact not children of King Jeager, but were instead fathered by Lord Armin. The King personally dismissed all the rumors and gave each child his full support and endorsement. Recent genetic studies on modern day descendants of King Eren have done nothing to clear the mystery up, and in fact have confused the question even more._

\---

The stone felt cold against Armin's bare back as he laid against the wall, his breath crystallizing in the cold air of the castle. Eren was laid sprawled on the floor, a sheet twisted around his naked body.

Armin could faintly hear the sounds of Mikasa getting cleaned up in the next room.

"So," he said at last. "Did you hear the news. Apparently Christa the castle midwife, is actually Lady Historia, who ran off with another woman three years ago."

Eren let out a laugh. "Good gods Armin. We just had some of the best sex since we got back from the last war, and you want to talk about this shit? What brought that up anyway?"

Armin gave a helpless shrug. "I've been keeping my ear low. Turns out Christa and her lover wanted to get married. They had a priest do the ceremonies and they signed all the correct documents. But, then the High Bishop of Trost proclaimed that their union was a sin and annulled the whole mess."

"Wait, that old goat is still alive?"

"Apparently," Armin shrugged. "Anyway, then the House of Reiss got wind of who Christa was and demanded she return. When she said no, they apparently hired some men to try and kidnap her and bring her back. They all got the snot beaten out of them by Captains Reiner, Bertholdt and Annie. Last I heard Christa was planning on petitioning you to sanctify her marriage and grant her protection from her family."

"Oh this just keeps getting better," Eren rolled his eyes. "I assume its not going to be as simple as saying yes to Christa's pleas and telling everyone else to jump in the moat if they have a a problem."

"Unfortunately no," Armin sighed. "The church is going to raise a stink about this. You know how uptight those old bastards are. They're not going to like it if you try telling them what to do. The problem is, is that the church still has a lot of power, and folks aren't going to be happy if they think you're trying to muscle in on the gods. The House of Reiss is going to be a problem too. They've never liked you, and they still have enough influence that they could cause a lot of trouble, maybe even bring about another Night of Knives."

Eren scowled. "They better not if they know what's good for them."

"Yes... but..." Armin closed his eyes and thought. "You know, those Bishops at the church aren't quiet as pure and holy as they like to proclaim. The High Bishop of Trost apparently has some dirty little secrets in his back yard. Secrets that like to eat grass and go "Baa!""

Eren burst out laughing. "Oh this is rich. So we just need to find some dirt to dangle over his head..."

"And the church will be bending over backwards trying to save face," Armin smiled. "As for the Reiss... Well, a few of them managed to escape the noose when the Night of Knives was over... I'm sure midnight visit from Mikasa might remind them what they managed to weasel out of."

Eren grinned evilly. "You're a bloody genius Armin. Mikasa!"

Mikasa stuck her head in through the doorway. Her hair was still wet and droplets of water were sliding down her naked chest. "Yes Milord?"

"Tomorrow, I need you to get someone who can dig up some dirty little secrets about a few bishops." Eren commanded.

Mikasa nodded. "I'll get Ymir on it tomorrow."

Armin choked on a laugh. "Oh this is too good..."

"Wait..." Eren suppressed a snicker. "Don't tell me Ymir and Christa..." and then he burst out laughing.

\---

_It is said that whatever Lord Armin said, King Eren did. The King made no secret of this, and merely waved it off as him merely knowing good advice when he heard it. However, it was definitely more than that, for one word from Lord Armin could stay King Eren's hand in an instant, and the king would follow without question any suggestion given from his adviser._

_How Lord Armin, the grandson of a Royal Librarian and son of a book merchant, was first able to gain King Eren's trust, (A feat only achieved by one other person.) no one is really sure. But what cannot be denied is that he alone had the king's ear, and thus was instrumental in shaping the history of Shiganshina._

\---

Armin found Eren curled up in a corner of the gardens, his hands up over his head and his royal clothes stained with dirt. It had been barely a month since Queen Carla had died, King Grisha had vanished, and Eren had been plopped on the throne with the sound of trumpets and much pomp and fanfare.

"Eren?"

Eren lowered his hands and turned his head. "Armin?"

"Hey, how'd your first day as king go?"

Eren took a deep breath. "Oh gods Armin. I don't know what to do. Everyone is asking me what my first act as king should be. They want to know what I am going to spend the money in the treasury on. I've got generals telling me to increase the officer's salaries. There's representatives from the trading guilds saying that I should decrease the trade taxes and representatives from the noble's houses saying I should raise them. I had an envoy from the Sycades arrive offering a princess for me to marry. There even was an old man from a mountain village who wanted to know what I planned to do about bandits in the hills. I didn't even know there was bandits in the hills!" He gave Armin a look of pure panic. "I can't do this Armin. I don't even know what to say to anything. What do I do?"

"Fix the roads."

Eren froze. "What?"

Armin cleared his throat nervously. "The roads are in bad shape. If we fix the roads, than your troops will be able to get from one end of the kingdom quickly, we'll be able to supply them easier, and messages will be able to reach you quicker. Also, farmers and craftsmen will be able to get their produce to the markets quicker and easier, meaning everyone can make more money because less of it spoils. Local merchants will be able to move their goods easier and it'll make foreign merchants more likely to come. If we fix the bridges as well, we can charge caravans a toll to use them, which will generate more money for the treasury."

Eren stared at him in shock. Then threw his arms around him. "Goddamnit Armin! You're a goddamn genius! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

The next day, when Eren attended court, he had Armin and Mikasa at his side. When he announced that he was going to spend money to fix the roads, there was an uproar among the advisers. Most tried to talk him out of it, pleaded with him to change his mind, one even tried to threaten Eren into submission. Eren however had dug his heels in a remained firm. He was going to fix the roads, he was king, and if they didn't like it, then they could take a long walk off a watch tower.

_"If they thought a young king would be easy to influence,"_ Armin thought, _"Then they'd be wrong."_

The irony of his words would never occur to him.


End file.
